Dune: Sands of Arrakis
by D Jamez
Summary: This is a story of Dune a few years after Childran of Dune. R/R Teaser out 6-17-03


Dune  
  
The Sands of Arrakis  
  
What drives a man to his doom? It is neither plague nor wound nor word. It is what all men, mortal or not suffers for. The only killer is one's self."  
  
A figure, tall, black, and ancient strode across the windswept lands of Arrakis, otherwise know as Dune. It fell over and lay there for a long while.  
***** In the capitol city of Arakeen, the man called Hora' Doneis roamed the streets. He neither was wandering nor was on a set path. He simply was. Twelve days ago a most significant thing had happened. Muad'dib's male child, Leto had died. This caused a major revolution on Dune. It was no longer controlled by the houses, but by the people. Dune was finally it's own world. Twelve days. Those twelve short days had been some of the bloodiest day known to Dune. Back to the original point. Why did Leto die? He was almost a god. He could become wurm, and he defiantly could not have been killed by something as weak as this planet was. While Dune was a barren, deadly wasteland to most, there were a few to whom it had no power over. Leto had been one. So was Hora'. This is what puzzled him. The only thing here what could have possible killed Leto would be another super- powerful being. But there was no being more powerful than him. The was no way to be more powerful. He was a god. Well, in some cases, so was Hora'. He had worshipers who thought him the next Muad'dib, and had some who thought him just to be a guy with a lot of tolerance to pain. They did not realize what quality he had that Muad'dib had. If they had, no one would think he was normal. Hora' was blind. Blind but could still see. Still see, feel, sense, know. He was not cut off from knowing about the world. The world was cut of from knowing about him. But they refused to try to know about him. He was just another wannabe, not having any special powers besides being able to resist some sand in his nose. Those who thought that way would come to realize that he was no fake. All is would take is time. Time, and a little, encouragement.  
***** There was a storm coming up. He could sense it. While the others who rely on sight alone could not yet see it, he could. And not just "know". He could feel the patterns of the wind, hear the roar of the howling dust as it sped ever onward, feel the sting of the sand on his cheek. So why was this storm any different than normal? Well, he honestly didn't know. All he could sense in it was power. That was the difference. Power, and determination. It was coming all right. He just hoped everyone else was prepared.  
***** Count Fenring stood on the outskirts of Arakeen. Wearing a thick cloak and a stillsuit, he was ready for the storm. He knew Hora' was too. Hora'. Huh. He bet Hora' thought that emanation of power was the storm. Well, the dust would bring something different this time.  
***** Hora' stared at the ground. There was a small patch of light sand, in which he could see a multitude of small, worm-like shapes moving about. This seemingly ordinary patch of sand was a worm map. It had the power to track the movements of every single worm on the planet Arrakis. He used this device now for a purpose most others would never. He used it to seek a worm. Finding one not more than 2 miles away, he set off in that direction, scooping the bit of sand into a pouch on his belt. It was an odd day on Dune. I t was as if the storm waiting to happen was being held back by some invisible force. The air was bone-dry, and a breeze that for once did not hold a stinging sand played across the landscape. Hora' walked briskly through the dawning more to the area that the worm was in. he put the sand for the map back down. The worm was about a third of a mile south. Good enough. Hora' took what looked like an odd plunger from his sack, and set it on the ground. He pressed a button and the air fell silent. Thump. Thump. Thump. "Why was this taking so long?", Hora' thought. Suddenly he heard the hissing of the wormsign. The plunger device disappeared into a falling vortex of sand. "Oh." Hora' moved back quickly, and readied himself to jump. As he stood watching the swirling abyss of sand, he was reminded of an hourglass. Well, it was time already for it to immerge. Finally, a huge brown-black shape shot forth from the ground. Hora' jumped. With a great Thud, the worm fell to the ground, with Hora', looking as if this were no big deal, sat on top. He tugged a scale with his hook and set off into the distance.  
*****  
As Hora' set toward the southern half of the globe, he was filled with wonder at the amount of change the Fremen had brought to this land. After about 3 thumpers, for this worm was a large one, he let is slide back under the surface. Even if the worm had been able to go on, he would have been stopped soon anyway by what Hora' now saw. . He looked around in amazement and what seemed to be green sand.  
"Green sand, how odd!" Hora' spoke to himself.  
"Not sand, grass," said a voice from behind him. "You can see how well our plan has worked."  
Hora' turned to see Stilgar facing him, not even wearing a stillsuit.  
"Well who do we have here? Long time no see, relatively speaking. Isn't it odd how colors are still present to me? I've been trying to figure out why, but I guess it's just one more riddle in life's game. How has the reborn south treated you?"  
"Very well, thank you. Keynes set something in motion here all those years ago, and after Usul reclaimed the Empire, we finally could obtain it. The south of Arrakis if now a virtual paradise. I had never thought that Usul's tales of water from the sky were true," The elder Fremen replied.  
"Usul did surprise us with many things, Stilgar. The main one still probably being his son, Leto II. It is on this subject that I have come."  
"Yes, our men have heard the Leto has fallen to the sands! We have not found out why yet. No worm could have taken him, yet we did not even find his body."  
"An odd twist of fate indeed, but a grim subject. Let us talk of your success with the southern hemisphere. It seems impossible that this was accomplished!"  
"It was a tedious task indeed. We were saddened when we found that we had to kill the Little Makers to be able to accomplish this, but what must be done is done. It is such an odd feeling to not want for water."  
"Water is still wealth in the north. I think it was a good idea to leave some of the sands and deep desert for the Makers."  
"Certainly! Come, come, I have much to show and tell you."  
***** 


End file.
